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Clarinet Assembly Tip for Beginners

Author: Bill
Date: 2001-05-29 21:39

I recently posted a question under the topic subject "Repair Tech Question". I learned a lot about assembly, and bridge key linkage adjustment from the replies. Even though my horn is indeed out of adjustment, I did not realize that I was assembling the upper and lower joints of my horn(s) incorrectly.

Usually I aligned the upper and lower joint rings, and then gave the joints a little twist so my left pinky could comfortably reach the left hand little finger (pinky) keys. WRONG: My basic clarinet book says to put the two joints together so that the linkage mechanism is lined up. If this is not done correctly, the upper joint Eb/Bb key may not close completely when the lower joint Bb/F key is closed, or the upper key may be closed and the lower key open. You can check the simultaneous closure of the two keys with a feeler guage made from cigarette paper or a phone book page. John Butler also suggested playing Eb using the 1 - 4 fingering.

Incorrect bridge key linkage alignment can cause some notes to sound poorly, and/or the Bb/F key action to function poorly.

I found that different makers have different bridge key linkages, and you need to need to know what correct alignment looks like for your horn. Some horns allow a wider range of variation than others.

See the above mentioned topic for more information, and thanks again to those who helped me understand this topic.

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